Project Overview

S24-050

Project Type: IPM Centers Grant

Funds awarded in 2024: $40,000.00

Grant Recipient: University of Florida - Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory

Region: Southern

State: Florida

Cooperating States: Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia

Project Coordinator:

Yoosook Lee, Yoosook Lee

University of Florida - Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory

IPM working group–Mosquito BEACONS: Biodiversity Enhancement And Control of Non-native Species (Year 4)

Reports

Commodities

Animals: other

Community and Urban Pest Management: commercial, public health

Human Health: workers, residents, applicators

Target Pests

Target Pests: Asian tiger mosquito, insects

Practices

Pest Management: behavioral control, biological control, chemical control, decision support system, disease vectors, habitat modification, modeling, pesticide resistance management, traps

Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity, wildlife

Sustainable Communities: public participation, public policy, quality of life

Proposal abstract:

i. The problem or opportunity

In the southern United States, several mosquitoes of medical and veterinary importance are invasive mosquito species, and their presence increases the risk of arbovirus transmission to humans and animals. Coordinated surveillance and control efforts across districts or states can be reduce operation cost, resulting in more complete risk assessments, better use of mosquito control strategies, better estimates of mosquito diversity and abundance, and improve opportunities to detect new threats to public health safety.

Here, we propose the continuation of the working group - Mosquito BEACONS: Biodiversity Enhancement and Control of Non-native Species - with a goal of implementing an integrated pest management (IPM) approach for the monitoring and control of invasive mosquito species in the Southern Region. The objectives are to:

Build capacity in IPM research and Extension priority areas through stakeholder meetings and collaborations.
Build training and research resources on invasive mosquito species to fulfill the priority identified by stakeholders.
Improve knowledge transfer through stakeholder engagement.

ii. The approach
We will continue to bring leadership in the mosquito control communities together to build training and research resources for invasive mosquito surveillance and control. Our working group is an integral part of the IPM infrastructure to address challenges of invasive mosquito control via promoting multi-state and -county collaborations and promote sustainable IPM practices. Our past invasive mosquito species surveillance capacity survey identified training needs as one of the top priorities for improving invasive mosquito surveillance and control in our region. For Year 4 continuing grant proposal, we plan to expand our in-person training for invasive mosquito species identification and data sharing with registration fees to increase sustainability. We will also provide added content on invasive mosquito species identification and QGIS through online courses. We will continue our quarterly meetings to promote multi-state communication and collaborations. We will also continue data curation for our online invasive mosquito dashboard for IPM decision support and research.

iii. The anticipated impact

Through these objectives we will enhance invasive mosquito surveillance and control capacity in the Southern Region. Stakeholder meetings and direct engagement with mosquito and pest control professionals will be utilized to foster collaboration in research and extension on invasive mosquito issues. Resources developed during our in-person workshops will be used to develop online training modules to provide continuing education credits which, in turn, will improve our capacity to provide training for a larger number of IPM professionals. Continuing data curation for invasive mosquito species dashboard and improving user interface will promote data sharing among stakeholders.

This project addresses critical IPM issues (SERA Priorities 2023):

Enhance federal, state and territory support for extension IPM to achieve IPM adoption
Strengthen the capacity and capability of IPM professionals at universities
Support for training of private sector IPM professionals (e.g., pest control technicians)
Support for IPM training for county and regional extension personnels
Support for IPM training of private and public entities
Support for Spanish language IPM- training and materials development and distribution
Invasive pests
Host range expansion
Arthropods and Arthropod Issues - Invasive mosquitoes
Diseases/Pathogens in Animals/Human Health: Arthropod-borne diseases, including Dengue Fever, Chikungunya, and West Nile Virus

Projects that improve delivery of IPM information by:

Creating new or updating existing resources to address stakeholder needs (pest management strategic plans, websites, webinars, and other training tools, pest ID guides, and infographics),
Developing and improving communication methods to educate a broad group of stakeholders on IPM practices for arthropods and diseases.
Developing new or improving/implementing existing programs (Distance education, Real-time pest/disease monitoring and IPM decision support)

Project objectives from proposal:

Planned Outputs	Anticipated Outcomes
Organize four stakeholder meetings Participants: Mosquito Control Districts State Department of Agriculture Public Health Agencies Academic Stakeholders	Devise action plan to address identified priorities for invasive species surveillance, control, and research activities though stakeholder engagements Increased communication across stakeholders through progress updates and collaboration Improved linkages and partnerships Multi-state and -county collaborations influenced by stakeholder priorities and needs
Educate participants on invasive mosquito and IPM issues (in-person/online training resources and dashboard) Participants: Mosquito Control Technicians Pest Management Technicians Public Health Professionals Graduate Students	Increased knowledge of invasive mosquito species awareness and identification Increased knowledge of data visualization and mapping techniques Increased knowledge on the available outreach materials for new staff/public education
Develop online training resources to address the knowledge gaps and deficiencies in coordinated invasive species surveillance efforts Participants: PD and co-PDs Graduate students	Stakeholders improve in their ability to share their data using QGIS and spatial data. Stakeholders use improved or optimized techniques to capture invasive mosquito species. Stakeholders improve in their recognition of invasive species in their jurisdiction and neighboring locations.
Collect data from additional stakeholders from new and low participating states and write report analyzing the existing survey data Participants: Mosquito Control Districts Public Health Agencies PD and co-PDs	Describe gaps and barriers to invasive species surveillance Summarize invasive species surveillance efforts across the Southern region Identify priority areas for improved surveillance regimes
Written survey reports to be presented to the working group and published in reputable journals in the field. Participants: PD and co-PDs Graduate students	Collaborative research to address the research priorities Collaborative extension activities to address the extension priorities
Utilizing self-assessments, pre-test/post-test and follow-up measurement tools to assess changes in knowledge, attitudes, satisfaction, aspirations Participants: Mosquito Control Technicians Pest Management Technicians Public Health Professionals Graduate Students	Target audiences increase their knowledge in the workshop subject area Assessment of the pre- and post-survey will demonstrate knowledge gained for workshop participants and allow the working group to document and quantify impacts
Curate invasive mosquito surveillance data on on-line data reporting platform Participants: Students PD and co-PDs	Populate invasive mosquito dashboards and EDDMaps with data to present to the stakeholders Provide a forum for real time pest/disease monitoring and IPM decision support
Extension Website and printed educational materials Participants: Mosquito Control Districts Public Health Agencies General Public	Provide resources for mosquito control and public health agencies to implement cost-effective and efficient mitigation strategies for invasive mosquito species Provide a forum for reporting findings from working group (meeting minutes, workshop information, pending grant submissions) Educate public on invasive mosquito bionomics Communicate with the National-level unit like Walter Reed Biosystems Unit (WRBU) for adding invasive species pages that are not currently available on their database.